South Windsor High School Teacher Facing Termination Over Sexually-Explicit Poem Read in Class

A South Windsor High School English teacher, who is currently on administrative leave, was notified by Superintendent of Schools Kate Carter that the district has begun the process of his termination for using “egregiously poor professional judgment” for sharing a sexually-explicit poem in class, according to NBC Connecticut.

David Olio, who has taught at the school since 1996, is facing termination for a Feb. 25 incident in which the 1968 poem “Please, Master” by Allen Ginsberg was read in class.

The poem contains explicit descriptions of sexual acts, vulgar language and expletives.

According to Carter’s letter notifying him of the termination process, via NBC Connecticut, Olio asked students if they had a poem to share on Feb. 25 and one student showed him his copy of “Please Master” and despite the student’s objections, Olio “insisted” on sharing it with the rest of the class after reading through it.

Olio then shut the door and told his third-period AP English class, “I’m not going to say what happens in AP English stays in AP English, but...” before turning off the lights to project the poem on the white board, according to NBC.

Olio then used his school computer to show them a YouTube video restricted to adults of the author reading the poem and later led students in a discussion about the poem, according to NBC.

Read the full story at NBC Connecticut here.

Image via Shutterstock

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